Day 11 Mountain Home-Twin Falls

Miles:  96.49              Terrain: Flat, downhill, uphill, windy
Depart:   6:30 AM      Arrive:  3:29 PM
Riding time: 7:19:56
Average Riding Speed: 13.2

           Today’s Garmin Download  and Map (for cycling data junkies!) 

Today's Ride

Today’s 96-mile ride was really two separate rides.  The first 60-miles, to the second sag stop, was relatively easy with the roads being primarily flat or downhill and the winds being tailwinds.  Although my cold meant I felt like the tank was partially empty, I made better time for the first 60 miles than I have on any other ride thus far on this tour.  We followed the Snake River, I-84, and the Union Pacific Railroad’s mainline that runs between Salt Lake City and Portland, OR. This area was primarily agricultural and very small towns.

Two miles after the second sag stop we turned to climb a hill and soon found ourselves riding into the wind.  And this basically didn’t change for the next 25 miles.  To make it worse, the roads were straight (straight into the wind) and the chip seal surface made the riding more difficult.  For many of the riders (myself included) maintaining a speed in excess of 10 mph was pretty challenging, if not impossible.  On top of this, the temperatures were near 100 degrees. 

Almost everyone said that because of the headwind on the last section of the ride, it was the toughest day yet on this tour. 

When we arrived in Twin Falls we were treated to a high view of the gorge outside of town.  This is the area where in the 1970's, stuntman Evil Kneivel made his failed attempt to jump the gorge in his rocket powered motorcycle.

Tomorrow is a short ride (38 miles) to Burley, Idaho.  On the way many of us may do a 15-mile diversion to Shoshone Falls.  These falls, known as the Niagara Falls of the West, look spectacular in the pictures we’ve seen.  What everyone does probably will depend a lot on whether the ugly headwinds make a return appearance.

 

Day 10 Boise-Mountain Home

Miles:  54.14              Terrain:  Flat wide open spaces
Depart:   8:10AM      Arrive:  1:01 PM
Riding time: 4:04:12
Average Riding Speed: 14.0

           Today’s Garmin Download  and Map (for cycling data junkies!) 

Today's Ride

The fairly short 54-mile ride today was a good way to come back from a rest day.  We started a little bit later than usual, had a relatively flat ride with no large climbs, and were in Mountain Home by early afternoon.  Leaving Boise we rode for about six miles on the Greenbelt Path along the Boise River.  Like most multi-use paths around the country, ongoing maintenance seems to be an issue.  There were many shrinkage or root cracks making for some rhythmic thumping during the first several miles.  When we left the path we rode about six miles on a state highway before getting onto I-84 for the next 11 miles.  The shoulder of today's I-84 segment was in much better shape than a few days ago, with very little debris and a smooth shoulder.

Our only sag stop of the day was set up at the truck stop at the exit, and then once again we found ourselves on what was old U.S. 30 for the next 22 miles.  Between the chip seal surface and a slight headwind, despite almost no vehicle traffic it was something of a grueling stretch.  For me it ended up being the slowest average speed day of the trip so far.  The cold I came down with last night didn’t help.  (But average speed is not what’s important on this trip.  It’s getting from one coast to another.)  The scenery was pure American West.  Flat land, some mountains in the distance, and the road seemed to spread out forever in front of us. 

Arriving into Mountain Home we had to detour due to some road work.  With nearby Mountain Home Air Force Base the major economic engine for this city, we saw a replica of a jet fighter set up in a park as we  rode down the final stretch to the motel. 

At the hotel, there was a railing in front of the walkway on the ground floor and along the second floor balcony. With temperatures approaching 100, we all seemed to figure out that it was a good chance to wash out the days cycling clothing in the sink, drape them over the railing to dry, and it wouldn’t take long for them to dry.  It didn’t!

Tomorrow is a 97 mile day to Twin Falls.  The temperature is forecast to be just about that same number.

Day 9 Rest Day in Boise, ID

Today was the first “rest day” of the tour.  No riding.  A chance to regroup physically from eight hard days of riding.  A day to not push against the pedals even when your legs say “enough already!”  No need to set an early alarm so breakfast can be eaten and bags out to the van by “load time.” A chance to catch up on sleep.  A day to go visit one of the museums in Boise, or go to the Post Office and send some stuff home that has proven to be nothing more than excess weight in a suitcase or duffel bag that has to be lifted every morning during loading time.  A chance to go eat when you want, where you want, because except for breakfast, meals are not included today.  And for many it is a chance to walk several blocks in the 100 degree temperature to go to a nearby bicycle shop to buy supplies that the first week of cycling revealed are needed. For me that was a new cassette with lower gears so that I’ll have an easier time when we hit the Teton Mountains next week.

But equally important as the physical rest is the chance for a mental rest.  The task of moving nearly 40 cyclists along, with different levels of cycling experience and riding speed, and keeping those riders from spreading out over to many miles of roadways, is a logistical challenge that America By Bicycle handles well.  Critical to that success is a high degree of organization which requires a significant number of procedures and rules that the riders must follow.  Be at breakfast at a certain time.  Bags at the van for loading at a certain time. Sign the sign up sheet when your bags are loaded onto the bus.  Before touching the snacks at the en route sag stops take off your bike gloves, wipe your hands with an antiseptic wipe and an antibacterial (an attempt to limit the spread of colds and other maladies from rider to rider).  Sign the signup sheet at each sag stop and when you reach the hotel at the end of the day.  This helps ABB keep track of where everyone is.  Check the ABB board in the lobby to confirm what time the mechanics will be available to help with any bike problems, what time you need to be at “route rap” to hear about the next day’s route and schedule, and where and when you must be at dinner.  Some nights you might need to try to grab some time with one of the washers and dryers at the hotel.  And then before you know it, it’s time to get ready for bed so you can do it all the next day.

A few of the riders have been heard likening it to the regimentation of “boot camp”.  So while we all enjoy the time spent on the bike, the underlying procedures we must follow mean that the day is not one that’s totally carefree.  And it’s also not a day with a lot of free time since on most days the long mileage we do ends up with most riders coming into the destination mid to late afternoon leaving little unstructured time.  So today’s mental rest is important too.  No need to set an alarm.  No need to remember to sign in.  No scheduled time that you must be somewhere.  You can hang around with others in the group and don’t have to worry about pedaling as fast as them.  Or you can hang out in your hotel room and leisurely write your blog.  Your day belongs to you.  And tonight I for one am feeling more mentally relaxed and ready to go tomorrow.

Our first of nine consecutive days will be a short one to Mountain Home, Idaho, only 53 miles away.  We’ll leave Boise on a bicycle path, but soon we’ll find ourselves once again on the shoulder of I-84—this time for about 15 straight miles.  We’ll pass two incongruously named streets—Ocean View Avenue and Sea Breeze Road.  With the short day many riders will be at our destination by noon.  A semi-relaxing day is a good transition before Thursday’s 97 mile ride to Twin Falls.  In fact there will be three days in the next nine day segment that are at least 90 miles.  And the final of the nine days, from Riverton to our next rest day in Casper, Wyoming will be the longest day of the tour—119 miles!

Shortly after leaving Boise we will hit the 650 mile mark, meaning that we will have less than 3,000 miles to go! And by the time we get to the next rest stop we’ll have knocked off another 700+ miles.  But still plenty of riding to go before we arrive in Portsmouth, New Hampshire in just under six weeks.

My Coast to Coast Cumulative Totals By Day For the First Segment
Date	Segment	Total Miles	Total Time	Avg Speed	Total Climbing	Feet Per Mile
19-Jun	Astoria Wheel Dip	26.10	00:01:45:29	14.8	584	22.4
20-Jun	Astoria-St Helens	94.80	00:06:22:01	14.9	3,671	38.7
21-Jun	St Helens-Welches	169.28	00:11:31:51	14.7	6,754	39.9
22-Jun	Welches-KaNeeTa	234.56	00:16:54:34	13.9	11,589	49.4
23-Jun	KaNeeTa-Prineville	294.40	00:22:17:17	13.2	14,754	50.1
24-Jun	Prineville-John Day	410.76	01:06:01:42	13.7	19,994	48.7
25-Jun	John Day-Baker City	491.82	01:12:35:53	13.4	24,696	50.2
26-Jun	Baker City-Ontario	576.44	01:18:00:53	13.7	26,656	46.2
27-Jun	Ontario-Boise	640.88	01:22:36:22	13.8	28,182	44.0

Day 8 Ontario, OR - Boise, ID

Miles:  64.44              Terrain:  Relatively flat farmland
Depart:   7:45 AM      Arrive:  1:08 PM
Riding time: 4:35:29        
Average Riding Speed: 14.0

           Today’s Garmin Download (for cycling data junkies!) 

                     
                                              Today's Ride

I don’t think it’s incorrect to say that everyone’s focus today was on getting to Boise for tomorrow’s rest day.  I can’t speak for others, but for me, the rest day is absolutely needed…both the physical and mental rest.  I’m having a great time, and while I knew that this trip would be not just a physical challenge but a mental one as well, I think I underestimated the degree of the mental effort needed.  I’ll use tomorrow’s rest day post to talk a bit more about that.  Today let me tell you about our 64 mile ride from Oregon into the second state we’re visiting on this trip, Idaho.

Less than a half mile after leaving the hotel, we stopped for the first of many photos to come at state welcome signs.  A few miles later we were in the midst of Idaho farmland.  It was quickly apparent that Idaho farming exists because of extensive irrigation efforts.  A few examples are shown in the pictures, but the agricultural highlight was watching the aerobatic flying by a crop dusting pilot shortly after we passed into the state.  As we all rolled down the road it seemed pretty apparent that our presence caused him to adjust his anticipated pattern of low level passes across the fields he was spraying.  His dives, pull ups, and turns on one wing were as good as any flying demonstration seen at any airshow. 

For portions of the route we were back on our old friend “old U.S. 30.” There were several long stretches (a couple of miles) on straight farm roads, moving first south, then east as we worked toward Boise.  Middleton was the one notable town we passed through (population of about 6,000) located about 30 miles from our destination.  As we entered the Boise suburbs it began to remind me of the northern Dallas suburbs in the 1990’s when we lived there.  Some large McMansions adjacent to farmland and older homes.   

Then newer developments popping up,and finally the older established neighborhoods.  Downtown Boise looks like a typical mid sized middle of America town with relatively low buildings, wide streets,  and in Boise’s case the state capital building.  Since today was such a short distance compared to what we’ve been doing, arrival was very early.  In my case I was at the hotel by shortly after 1:00pm (although my room wasn’t ready until closer to 2:00 pm).

Many of us headed from the hotel to a nearby bicycle shop called “George’s Bike Shop” to buy needed accessories, components and other bicycle items we need to try and make sure that the next nine-day leg of the trip goes as smoothly as possible.  Since today was a “jersey day” for us, where we were all supposed to wear our America by Bicycle jerseys, the shop looked like it was taken over by ABB.

Tonight we enjoyed a barbecue that we were supposed to have outdoors, but with temperatures nearing the century mark late in the day, most of us went indoors to eat.  We had our nightly “route rap” and got to say good-bye to two people, Mike and Michael, both who were riding only this first leg.  Since they were with us from the beginning, it was like seeing two family members go.  Conversely, I didn’t mention that in Baker City one of our riders had his daughter join the tour for this next leg which will end late next week in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. 

But for now it’s time to end this entry and enjoy an evening where I don’t have to get ready to head out in the morning.  And for the first time in 10 nights, I will not be setting my alarm!